Bloody Paperwork
by darris108
Summary: Set a few years after Harry's defeat of Lord Voldemort. Ron is once again spurred into taking action regarding to his relationship with Hermione. My first story of any real substance - please read and review!
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing, and if I did I wouldn't be writing fanfics like this, would I?

_A/N: Many thanks to my beta, Chris, who was my inspiration to start writing fanfics but also saved readers from excessive contractions, sentences lasting several lines, and the dreaded "had had". Thank you Chris!! Everyone else – enjoy!_

"Bloody paperwork!" groaned Ron in frustration.

Ron was completely fed up. For one thing, Ron had a huge hangover. He and Harry had been to a Cannons match yesterday, and the Cannons had beaten the Wimbourne Wasps very decisively, thus winning that season's championship. Unfortunately, Ron and Harry had been rather overenthusiastic in their celebrations at the Leaky Cauldron. Ron fully expected Harry to have a worse headache even than he did. Not only had Harry drank more, but Ginny would have given him hell for it this morning. Whilst she loved her husband very much, and Harry loved her in equal measure, Ginny definitely preferred him sober.

For another thing, this paperwork was mind-numbingly dull. Ron had decided very quickly after arriving at work that filling out paperwork was not helpful when your mind was already numb enough as it was. However, what bothered Ron the most was that Kingsley Shacklebolt, his boss and the Minister of Magic, would not let him take any time off work right now. In truth, Ron could not really blame the Minister since he had not actually told Kingsley why he wanted the time off. Ron hated to admit it, but currently they really were very busy. Thus, the reason why there was a whole stack of forms that needed filling in by Monday. That did not stop Ron from wanting to go straight to Kingsley's office and shouting at the man until he got what he wanted, or just walking out of the Ministry and not coming back until he had done what he needed to do.

Ron knew that Harry would understand – he was already experienced in these matters – and maybe Harry could talk to Kingsley and make him understand. It was not really something Ron wanted to tell everyone, but he felt safe telling Harry. Unfortunately for Ron, Harry had been on assignment, despite being hung-over, the whole day and would not be back until late that evening. He had actually been meaning to tell Harry for quite some time, but both of them had been very busy which meant time for discussions had been limited. Besides, it had only been yesterday that Ron had really decided that he was going to do it and now that he had, he wanted to talk to Harry as soon as possible. Harry was, after all, the person that had made Ron realise how much he wanted this. Of course, Harry probably would not even remember saying it, but Ron did. Ron had still been at least somewhat sober, when Harry had said it. Unlike many things that had happened the previous night, Harry's words stood out very clearly in Ron's memory.

"Y'know, Ron," Harry had said with a small hiccup, "you really should get a move on, before Hermione runs off with some other wandsome hizzard..." Ron assumed that Harry had meant "handsome wizard." However, the point still stood. Ron seriously doubted that Hermione would run off with some other wizard, handsome, wandsome or otherwise, but he had decided right there and then, that it was time to take the next step in their relationship. Ron had therefore decided that he would go around to Harry and Ginny's house that very evening and have a chat with them about it. Harry because he was Ron's best mate and Ginny because he felt he needed some feminine advice – both he and Harry had repeatedly proved during their time at Hogwarts that they were by no means experts when it came to girls and relationships.

Ron would be safe for that evening as Hermione was currently spending a few days with her parents to celebrate her father's birthday, but she was getting back tomorrow. They had invited Ron as well, which had secretly delighted him, but due to work he had been forced to refuse the invitation. Ron was actually quite annoyed about this as he got on very well with Hermione's parents having inherited his father's deep interest in all things Muggle. In hindsight, he would also have liked the chance to talk to Hermione's parents about it – not that he had decided to do it when he had declined the invitation.

Ron had never enjoyed filling in forms, and had not really expected as much of it when he signed up to become an Auror. Sitting behind a desk doing paperwork was not most people's idea of what being an Auror consisted of most of the time. He remembered back to his years at Hogwarts, doing homework, and studying for exams… he and Harry would be bored out of their minds and yet there would be Hermione, wonderful Hermione, still studying away despite he and Harry telling her, quite truthfully, that she really did not need to. Hermione could probably have passed all of her exams without any of the teachers teaching her anything all year. She was just... like that. However, Ron strongly suspected that if it had not been for her nagging, her help, and her guidance, he would have failed all of his OWL's. Grinning to himself, Ron imagined what she would say if she could see him now, allowing his mind to drift off when he really should be working. He returned his quill to the parchment, and began writing again.

A few minutes later, Ron groaned as he finished another form only to turn to his in-tray and see a huge stack of the damn things. He checked his watch and saw that it was only two o'clock in the afternoon. Harry would not be back until at least six o'clock, so there would be little point going round before then and despite work officially finishing at five, Ron would probably have to stay the extra hour he really did not have an excuse for not staying. Judging by the scribbling of quills coming from the adjacent Auror's cubicles, which had been constant for the past few days, the department would continue to be very busy for quite a while.

Ron sighed; they really did have a lot of work to do. Looking at the mountain of paperwork in his in-tray, Ron wished that he could be with Hermione and her parents celebrating, and not in his office filling out paperwork. Resuming his work, Ron began counting down until he could finally talk to Harry and Ginny, and get this off his chest.

He was going to propose to Hermione.


	2. Chapter 2

Harry was standing outside his front door and for someone who was about to enter their own house, he looked very apprehensive. He had rather a lot of making up to do with his wife, having come home from the final Quidditch match of the season in a not entirely favourable state. In short, Harry had been extremely drunk, even by his and Ron's high standards. He checked his watch, and saw that it was four o'clock. Harry had told Ron that he would be back at about six even though he knew full well that it would be long before then. This was partly to make sure he had some time to make up with Ginny, and partly to make the lazy sod stay at work for a bit longer instead of clocking off at five on the dot like he usually did. Harry grinned to himself; just because Ron was his best mate did not mean that he did not have to do his paperwork.

Harry pulled himself together, and prepared himself for the probable onslaught that Ginny would give him when he entered the house. He now had two hours alone with her, which should be enough time for him to placate her before Ron arrived. Just.

Ginny, however, did not need as much persuading as Harry thought. She was in a surprisingly good mood given the state he had come home in last night. When Harry asked Ginny what she was so pleased about she told him that she had been to see Teddy today. Harry was relieved, as this always cheered her up immensely. She told him all about her visit, from Teddy's constantly changing hair colour to his zooming around on the toy broomstick they had given him for his fifth birthday last month. Harry was just content to sit and listen. He enjoyed hearing about his godson, and as work was so busy at the moment, he had not seen him for a week or so. And besides, it kept Ginny in a good mood. For a while, anyway.

"...but when WE have children, Mr. Potter, I sincerely hope that you will _never_ come home in the state you were in last night!" she said, a quarter of an hour later.

"Oh, yeah, that... I'm really sorry, love," he said, sheepishly as his frowning wife turned her back on him and started to walk away.

"Ginny, wait!" he called after her and watched as she reluctantly turned back to face him.

"I really am sorry," he said, imploring her to forgive him. "And I know you hate it when I come home drunk, but... well, work's been a bit stressful lately, and I suppose I just got a bit... carried away..." his voice tailed off hopelessly.

Ginny sighed and walked back to him, placing a hand on his cheek. "Harry, please, just... don't do it again?"

"Never again," he promised fervently, although she did not seem entirely convinced.

"Listen," Harry said, trying to distract her from the subject, "Ron told me this morning that he wanted to come round and talk to us and that it was really important."

This certainly piqued Ginny's interest, enough so that she even forgot about Harry being drunk."Really? I wonder what that's about."

"Dunno," answered Harry, "but I said that he should come round at about six. He's free this evening anyway, cause Hermione's with her parents."

"Oh yes, I forgot about that," Ginny absently replied. "I wonder what could be so important that Ron has to come and talk to us while Hermione's away?"

Harry and Ginny spent the rest of the afternoon together. By the time the doorbell rang at six o'clock, everything was back to normal between them and Ginny was starting to feel very curious about Ron's plight. She opened the door to find Ron with a rather annoyed expression on his face. Ginny knew that look well; it was the same look that he had often worn when Hermione had forced him to do his homework.

"Hi Ron," she said, embracing her brother, who hugged her tightly back. She stepped back and surveyed him. "How are you?"

"Bored out of my bloody mind," he replied. Ginny laughed, and stood aside to let him in. "Harry!" she called, and a few seconds later, Harry appeared at the top of the stairs.

"Alright, Ron?" he said, coming downstairs with a broad grin on his face. Ron scowled.

"I hate paperwork," he grunted, causing Harry to laugh.

"Come in, Ron, but if you don't mind, I won't be offering you a drink. Not after last night," joked Harry, leading his best friend into the living room.

"Be fair, I wasn't as drunk as you were," complained Ron as Ginny raised an eyebrow in disbelief.

"Let's sit down," said Harry hurriedly, still keen to stay off that particular topic. They sat, Ginny curled up next to Harry on one sofa, with Ron sitting opposite them.

"Well come on then," said Ginny impatiently, after a few moments of silence. "What's so important?"

Ron seemed to be steeling himself to say something until he hesitantly began to speak.

"Well, the thing is, I'm... I'm... I'm going to... to ask Hermione... to marry me," he stammered, rushing the last few words. Ginny squealed in delight, and Harry cheered. Ron grinned in spite of himself.

"So?" asked Harry. "When are you going to do it?"

"Erm... I don't know," answered Ron causing Ginny to sigh in exasperation.

"What?" Ron asked defensively.

"Oh come on, Ron," she laughed. "You're going to have to do a bit better than that!"

"Yeah, I know," he replied, "but... well, that's what I wanted some advice on. After all, Harry, you've had, well... experience, and..."

"I'm a girl," finished Ginny.

"Well... yeah," said Ron. "So? How do you think I should do it?"

"Well, firstly, you need to choose a ring," said Ginny. "What do you think she'll like? You know her best, after all."

"Erm..." said Ron, clearly thinking hard. Ginny decided to give him a hand.

"What's her favourite colour?" she asked.

Ron thought for a moment before hesitantly answering, "Blue, isn't it?"

"Purple," said Ginny, leaning her head on Harry's shoulder, "but close enough."

"Erm... right," grunted Ron, looking a bit embarrassed and confused.

"Just kidding, it's blue," said Ginny, with a smile that left Ron feeling relieved. "But you have to be a bit surer of yourself than that when you ask her, Ron."

Ron stared at her, and then laughed, relieved. Harry started to laugh too, and then Ginny joined in. It took them a while to subside.

For the rest of the evening, they planned out Ron's proposal in detail. The following morning, which, mercifully, was Saturday, Ron and Harry went to Diagon Alley to buy a ring. It took them a while to decide, not made any easier by the fact that the shop assistant was completely in awe of having Harry Potter and Ron Weasley in his store at the same time. Ron was nearly as well known as Harry these days and it was clear that he enjoyed it, despite not having quite grown accustomed to people recognising him wherever he went within the wizarding world.

"Seriously," Ron said, as they left the shop, "I thought the bloke was going to explode!"

Harry laughed loudly. They returned to Harry's for lunch, and then Ron went back home to prepare for Hermione getting back from her parents' house, nearly forgetting the ring. Ginny giggled as he came back in to retrieve it.

"They're so perfect for each other, aren't they?" she said, when Ron had left and Harry had closed the front door. Harry could not help agreeing with her; the two complimented each other perfectly. He hugged her tightly, and lightly kissed the top of his wife's head.

"Perfect," he said.


	3. Chapter 3

A few hours later, Ron was standing upstairs in the bedroom he shared with Hermione; or rather, he was pacing up and down nervously. He could not explain, even to himself, why he was so nervous. It was not as if he was even going to be proposing that evening. Still, everything just had to go perfectly tonight, it _had_ to. He would give Hermione the best evening she had experienced in a long time. They had not really had many chances for romantic evenings lately, but tonight would be the perfect opportunity for both of them to spend time together and relax. Ron had even had the entire afternoon to prepare. He ran through everything again quickly, muttering to himself, just in case he had forgotten anything. A second later, he swore.

"The candles!" Ron yelled as he sprinted downstairs to make the final preparation, which completed the perfect atmosphere he had created in the room. When he was satisfied, Ron ran back upstairs as fast as he could, back into their bedroom, resuming his pacing.

A second later, however, Ron jumped as he jumped when he heard the front door open, and Hermione's voice say, "Ron?"

Ron quickly headed downstairs again to see his girlfriend standing in the doorway, looking slightly tired after having used Muggle transport as she was going to see her parents, but nonetheless, beautiful. With a smile, he walked up to Hermione and hugged her, lifting her off her feet and spinning her around. She squealed and giggled until he put her down, and kissed her. After a long time, they broke apart, and Ron beamed at his girlfriend.

"How are your parents?" he asked.

"Oh, they're fine," she replied. "They were sorry you couldn't make it, though."

"So was I," he said, "but I survived." She giggled again, and he grinned.

"You seem to be in a very good mood," Hermione said with an amused look, but slightly suspicious. "What have you got in store for me, I wonder?"

Ron tried, and failed, to look innocent. He placed a hand around her shoulders and steered her into the dining room.

"Oh Ron!" she exclaimed, delightedly.

She had to hand it to him. It was very romantic indeed. The room was beautifully lit by hovering candles, and there was a single rose in a vase on the table, which was set for two. Ron even had soft music playing in the background, which Hermione suspected had been borrowed from Molly as she recognised the voice of Celestina Warbeck, Molly's favourite singer.

"Ron, it's... it's beautiful," she said, leaning up and kissing him gently.

"Thank you." He smiled, and sat her down in one of the chairs, before he sat in the one opposite.

The rest of the evening passed in something of a haze for Hermione. After dinner, she sat on the sofa with Ron, kissing him for what seemed like hours, and then they went upstairs. Ron ran her a hot bubble bath, adding some floating candles to the bathroom, too, and Hermione soaked for a long time. Ron even charmed the water so it did not get cold. After that, they retreated to their bedroom, and, sometime later curled up together to go to sleep.

Unfortunately Ron could not sleep, so preoccupied he was with what he was planning for the next day. Hermione could sense that he was anxious about something. He did not say anything, and she could not exactly read the expression on his face whilst her head was buried in his chest as he held her close to him. Still, she could sense that something was on his mind.

"You OK, Ron?" she asked, concern in her voice.

"Hmm? Yeah, I'm fine," Ron answered with a sigh.

"What is it?" she asked, lifting her head up to look into his brilliantly blue eyes. "Tell me."

"I was just... thinking," he said, vaguely.

"I was wondering what that strange noise was," Hermione said cheekily. Ron laughed.

"I love you, Mione," Ron said once he stopped laughing.

Hermione had heard these words from him several times before, but this time it seemed different somehow. She felt the truth of the words reverberate in the way he spoke them, and they echoed softly in her heart. At that moment, she knew just how much Ron needed her, and how much she depended on him. They could not live without each other. At that moment, she realised that she loved Ron more than anything and would have been content to lie there with him for the rest of her life. Ron was all she would ever want, all she would ever need. What's more, she knew that he felt exactly the same about her. She knew exactly what she wanted now. Hermione knew that they belonged together and that they would be together forever. Most importantly of all, she knew that Ron felt the same way about her; that he wanted her and only her and that he always wanted to be with her. Best of all, Ron would never, ever leave her.

"I love you too, Ron", she said, leaning forwards to kiss him.

He took her in his arms again, kissing her with such passion and need that she never wanted to let go. Hermione just wanted to stay there, kissing Ron, needing him, forever. As she kissed him, Hermione thought of her future with Ron. She thought of marriage followed by the long years, decades even, that they would have together, and the possibility of children. Enjoying the kiss, she imagined them as a family living in a small cottage in the countryside, her, Ron, and their children. She broke away from Ron, smiling. She liked that thought very much.

"What?" he asked.

"I was thinking, too," she replied.

"I knew it wasn't just me making the noise," he said, and she giggled. Only he could make her giggle like that. She was not exactly the giggly type. No-one could make her feel the way that Ron could. It was also fair to say that no-one could make him feel the way that she could, and that was that. She loved Ron, and he loved her. With his strong arms around her, caressing her lovingly, Hermione gradually drifted off to sleep, in a feeling of pure bliss.


	4. Chapter 4

The next day, Ron and Hermione went to the Burrow for Sunday lunch. Much to Molly's disapproval, Arthur inquired almost continuously about Hermione's parents, particularly the various Muggle appliances they had in their house. Hermione was in a very good mood after the previous night, so answered all his questions patiently. Still, she could not help but notice that Ron kept catching Harry's eye and grinning. Her suspicions were even more aroused when she noticed Ginny frequently glancing at her and Ron. Something strange was going on. However, no one else seemed to notice, or to be acting strangely. Eventually, Hermione caught Ginny's eye, and received an excited grin from the young redhead.

"What?" mouthed Hermione across the table, but Ginny only giggled quietly and winked at her.

The food was, of course, delicious. Molly was the best cook that Hermione knew, and she had been pleasurably surprised over the last year or so to discover that Ron had inherited some of his mother's talent. Not that he cooked very often; whilst Ron might have been quite good at cooking, he did not enjoy it much. However, despite Molly's excellent cooking, Hermione could not stop herself from dwelling upon what it was that Harry, Ginny, and Ron were hiding.

After everyone had finished eating, Molly levitated the dishes through to the kitchen with her wand. Everyone eventually moved through to the living room, sitting down on the various chairs and sofas. Hermione sat down on a sofa and waited for Ron to join her, but Ron left the room, muttering something that sounded like, "Back in a minute."

Hermione thought he had gone to the bathroom until she saw Harry and Ginny, who were both grinning broadly at her.

When everyone had finally sat down, Molly looked around and asked, in slight surprise, "Where's Ron?"

"He said he'd be back in a-"

Hermione never finished the sentence, for at that moment Ron came back into the room, his eyes fixed on her. She stared straight back at him as he cleared his throat. The whole room went quiet and he walked slowly towards her. Hermione's eyes seemed drawn to his hand, which was sweating profusely. He was clutching something small in it. Ron walked up to where she was sitting and stared at her for a moment. Then, he started talking, the whole room hanging on his every word.

"Hermione Granger," he said, his eyes locked on hers.

As she stared straight back into his eyes, something struck her. The force of her realisation was so powerful that Hermione was sure if she had not been sitting down, she would have been blown off her feet. It explained perfectly Harry and Ginny's peculiar behaviour, and the object clutched in his hand.

_No_, she thought, _no, surely not..._

"Hermione," continued Ron. "I told you once that you were the most wonderful person I've ever met. You still are."

She felt her heart pummelling her ribcage. _Oh my God..._ She glanced around the room; even George was completely dumbstruck.

"You mean everything to me. There is nothing without you."

Hermione looked back into Ron's eyes and saw nothing but truth and love in them. She was speechless. She could hear Molly crying quietly into a handkerchief, but everyone else remained silent with his or her eyes fixed on Ron. Ron finally descended to one knee in front of her, and Hermione gasped. She could hardly believe that this was happening, especially not in front of his whole family. She thought it was the bravest thing Ron had ever done.

"I love you. I need you," he said, looking up at her from where he was kneeling. "I'm asking you to give me the chance I've always dreamed of, the chance to let you know exactly how special you are to me. And, if you let me, I intend to do just that."

There was a pause, and Ron held out the object held in his hand. It was a velvet box. He opened it, and Hermione gasped again. Sitting in the box was the most beautiful ring she could ever have imagined. The sapphire set into the centre was precisely her favourite shade of blue and it shone brilliantly along with the small diamonds encrusted around it. Hermione felt tears well up in her eyes as she looked at it.

"Hermione," Ron said after a moment's pause. "Will you marry me, Hermione Granger?"

She slowly stood up, looking through her watery eyes into Ron's blue ones. She noticed suddenly how perfectly they matched the ring.

"Yes!" she said, very huskily as Ron beamed up at her.

"YES!" she shouted delightedly, so loudly that Ron fell over.

And then everyone was laughing, and crying and cheering. Hermione helped Ron to his feet with trembling hands, and he gently slipped the ring on to her finger. They shared a kiss that was more passionate than any they had ever shared before. Every ounce of love the young couple had for each other was conveyed in one kiss, and it was a kiss that could have lasted years. They would not have cared. They could simply have stood there forever, but eventually they had to break apart to breathe. He beamed down at her and kissed the top of her head, and then held her close.

"Perfect," Ron whispered. "You're perfect,"

The following day, Ron and Hermione visited Hermione's parents to tell them the good news. They were simply ecstatic. It was obvious to them that it did not matter if Hermione was a witch or Ron a wizard; the true magic existed deeply within everyone's hearts.

"Of course," said Hermione, "we'll have to have a ceremony in a Muggle registry office, make it legal and everything."

"Registry office?" said Ron, confusedly.

He had never heard of such a place. Hermione's parents found this highly amusing; her mother, who had just been handing him a cup of tea, nearly spilt it over him. Apologising, but still chuckling, she returned to the sofa to sit next to her husband.

"Well, we need to make it legal in the Muggle world too, Ron, considering I'm Muggle born," said Hermione, matter-of-factly.

"I'm not disputing that, but what's a registry office?" asked Ron, causing Hermione to giggle.

"It's just a place where they keep records of people's names in the Muggle world, Ron," she answered. "We just need to sign a few forms so we can prove that we're legally married."

Ron refrained, with difficulty, from rolling his eyes. _Bloody paperwork_!

-End-

Thanks once again to my beta Chris, and to you for reading!


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